Top Regional News: 2 found dead of ‘unnatural’ causes

PEORIA — Police were working to identify two males found dead Tuesday in an apartment in the 900 block of South Western Avenue in Peoria.

Both appeared to have died an “unnatural death,” according to Peoria County Coroner Jamie Harwood, though he could not comment on more details.

Autopsies were scheduled for Wednesday.

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Man indicted in death of boy

PEORIA — Joshua A. Rutledge, 34 of Peoria Heights, was indicted Tuesday on charges of first-degree murder and aggravated battery in the death of an 16-month-old boy in October.

Peoria Heights police responded to Rutledge’s house Oct. 16 after a 911 call regarding an infant who had fallen off the bed. While they headed to the home the dispatcher informed them the baby wasn’t breathing, according to police reports. When police arrived, Rutledge told them the child had fallen and hit his head on a plastic truck.

The report said Rutledge told them that after the boy fell, he gave him a bath. That’s when the child “got real stiff and he noticed that (the boy) wasn’t breathing.” Rutledge told police that he called 911 and began CPR. Police noted in their report that there was no damage to the truck. Police officers took over the CPR until the boy was taken to the hospital by paramedics who noticed blood on the left side of the his head, the report stated. The boy died Oct. 18 of blunt force trauma, said Peoria County Coroner Jamie Harwood.

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Board hopes for time clock resolution

GALESBURG — Knox County officials hope a resolution occurs before proceeding to court against department heads for not implementing a time clock system.

Knox County Board Chair Pam Davidson, D-District 3, made that assessment about an order seeking declaratory judgement that was filed in Knox County Circuit Court on Friday against 11 defendants who are not compliant with the time clock system. There has been no service requested in the case, meaning none of the named parties have been served, nor has a court date been set. That means the document sits in a legal stalemate. The named defendants know about the suit because of the county undergoing an electronic filing system beginning Oct. 1.

The Knox County Board, along with Treasurer Robin Davis, seek a declaration from a judge that resolves the time clock issue and determines how the board and/or treasurer can enforce its system and any other relief.

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Morton to address lead levels

MORTON — Steps are being taken to lower lead levels in water sources in Morton School District elementary schools where tests showed the lead exceeded the limit allowed in a new state law.

Kitchen sinks that exceeded the state’s 2 parts per billion limit for lead are no longer being used for food preparation. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s lead limit for schools is 20 ppb.

Results of lead testing done in Morton’s four elementary schools by Bloomington-based Ideal Environmental Engineering were posted on the school district’s website Friday. Also, parents of students in buildings that had findings greater than 5 ppb were informed of those results in writing, which is required under the state law. The state law requires school buildings constructed before Jan. 1, 2000 which have pre-K through fifth-grade students to undergo lead testing.

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